Validity of the energy/protein index in the detection of overweight in low income Venezuelan preschoolers

The validity of the energy/protein index (EPI) in the detection of overweight was assessed in 163 low income children (four to six years old) from Valencia, Venezuela. Weight, height, arm circumference, and skinfolds were taken. Weight for height (W/H), limb fat area (LFA), and EPI were calculated. All subjects with W/H < or =p10 were considered deficient, with W/H between >p10 and < or =p90 normal, and with W/H and LFA >p90 in excess. Percentile distribution of EPI for age and gender was calculated, regarding below the norm all subjects < or =p10, normal those > p10 and p90, and above the norm those >p90. Validity was assessed through sensibility, specificity, and likelihood ratio. Student's t test and ANOVA were used for group comparisons (p < 0.05). According to the nutritional diagnosis, 27.60% of the children were deficient, 66.88% normal, and 15.52% in excess. According to the EPI, 7.36% of the sample was considered below the norm, 82.20% normal, and 10.44% above the norm. The EPI decreased with age in boys, and in the 6 years old group was significantly higher for girls. Lastly, an EPI above the norm is eleven times more likely to occur in a subject considered in excess than in subjects considered normal. For deficiency, the tests did not meet the expected values.     

Evidence for the aquatic binding of arsenate by natural organic matter-suspended Fe(III)

Dialysis experiments with arsenate and three different NOM samples amended with Fe(lll) showed evidence confirming the formation of aquatic arsenate-Fe(Ill)-NOM associations. A linear relationship was observed between the amount of complexed arsenate and the Fe(lll) content of the NOM. The dialysis results were consistent with complex formation through ferric iron cations acting as bridges between the negatively charged arsenate and NOM functional groups and/or a more colloidal association, in which the arsenate is bound by suspended Fe(lll)-NOM colloids. Sequential filtration experiments confirmed that a significant proportion of the iron present at all Fe/C ratios used in the dialysis experiments was colloidal in nature. These colloids may include larger NOM species that are coagulated by the presence of chelated Fe(lll) and/or NOM-stabilized ferric (oxy)hydroxide colloids, and thus, the solution-phase arsenate-Fe(Ill)-NOM associations are at least partially colloidal in nature.     

Stochastic models for simulating parallel, rotary, and side-opening milking parlors

Simulation models of parallel, rotary, and side-opening milking parlors were built that could predict milking parlor performance according to herd size, number of milking stalls, labor quality, and cow characteristics. The models were validated by statistically comparing the duration of the simulated milking process with actual data collected at 3 dairy farms during 12 mo. Various scenarios were generated to study parlor performance, and the results indicated that for a parlor with up to 14 milking stalls, a side-opening design provided greater capacity than parallel or rotary parlors. Performance of a side-opening parlor was reduced by enlargement up to 20 milking stalls. For 10 to 40 milking stalls, a rotary design gave better performance than a double parallel design in terms of milking process duration and stall utilization. The presented models can serve as a practical tool in designing new parlors or changing operations of existing ones.     

Perinatal complications following gestational diabetes mellitus how 'sweet' is ill?

OBJECTIVE: We tested the effect of patient compliance, fasting plasma glucose on oral glucose tolerance test, maternal body constitution, and the method of treatment (diet versus insulin) on the perinatal outcome of patients with gestational diabetes mellitus. STUDY DESIGN: A prospective population-based study compared the perinatal outcome of patients with gestational diabetes mellitus (n = 470) (diabetic with regard to the parameters specified above) and a contemporaneous control group (nondiabetic, n = 250). RESULTS: The diabetic and control groups were matched in demographic characteristics. Patient compliance reduced the rate of macrosomia (14.4%) and neonatal hypoglycemia (3.4%) but not to the levels of the control group (5.2% and 1.2% respectively, p < 0.05). The level of fasting plasma glucose on the oral glucose tolerance test had no effect on perinatal outcome. Intensified (insulin) treatment reduced the rate of macrosomia and large-for-gestational age infants in the subgroups with intermediate and high levels of fasting plasma glucose on the oral glucose tolerance test (9.5%/14.2% and 12.2%/24.2% respectively), again not to levels of the control group (5.2%/10.8%). Obese patients were found to have more perinatal complications than lean patients. Intensified (insulin) treatment has proved to be beneficial in terms of reducing the rate of perinatal complications in the obese patients, but not to the corresponding levels of the control group. Such treatment had no effect on the lean patients. CONCLUSIONS: Strict control of maternal hyperglycemia and high patient compliance are imperative for an effective reduction of perinatal complication in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus. The desired plasma glucose level in the glycemic control of these patients should be further reduced, thus bringing the rate of perinatal complications to that of the normal population.     

Image Deblurring in the Presence of Impulsive Noise

Consider the problem of image deblurring in the presence of impulsive noise. Standard image deconvolution methods rely on the Gaussian noise model and do not perform well with impulsive noise. The main challenge is to deblur the image, recover its discontinuities and at the same time remove the impulse noise. Median-based approaches are inadequate, because at high noise levels they induce nonlinear distortion that hampers the deblurring process. Distinguishing outliers from edge elements is difficult in current gradient-based edge-preserving restoration methods. The suggested approach integrates and extends the robust statistics, line process (half quadratic) and anisotropic diffusion points of view. We present a unified variational approach to image deblurring and impulse noise removal. The objective functional consists of a fidelity term and a regularizer. Data fidelity is quantified using the robust modified L ¹ norm, and elements from the Mumford-Shah functional are used for regularization. We show that the Mumford-Shah regularizer can be viewed as an extended line process. It reflects spatial organization properties of the image edges, that do not appear in the common line process or anisotropic diffusion. This allows to distinguish outliers from edges and leads to superior experimental results.     

Evaluation of specific ultraviolet absorbance as an indicator of the chemical composition and reactivity of dissolved organic carbon

Specific UV absorbance (SUVA) is defined as the UV absorbance of a water sample at a given wavelength normalized for dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration. Our data indicate that SUVA, determined at 254 nm, is strongly correlated with percent aromaticity as determined by 13C NMR for 13 organic matter isolates obtained from a variety of aquatic environments. SUVA, therefore, is shown to be a useful parameter for estimating the dissolved aromatic carbon content in aquatic systems. Experiments involving the reactivity of DOC with chlorine and tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH), however, show a wide range of reactivity for samples with similar SUVA values. These results indicate that, while SUVA measurements are good predictors of general chemical characteristics of DOC, they do not provide information about reactivity of DOC derived from different types of source materials. Sample pH, nitrate, and iron were found to influence SUVA measurements.     

Antireflection coating design for series interconnected multi‐junction solar cells

Antireflection coating design for multi‐junction solar cells can be more challenging than in the single‐junction case. Reasons for this are discussed. Analytical expressions used to optimize antireflection (AR) coatings for single junction solar cells are extended for use in monolithic, series interconnected multi‐junction solar cell AR coating design. The result is an analytical expression which relates the solar cell performance (through J_sc) directly to the AR coating design through the device reflectance. It is also illustrated how AR coating design can be used to provide an additional degree of freedom for current matching multi‐junction devices. Published in 2000 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.